Half-Time
by WhiteWings9
Summary: Half-time during a game, and Ivan is distracted by Alfred as he reorganises his team. Russia/America. Part of the cheerleader!AU.


**Waiting for Spring**  
><strong>Half-Time<strong>

Come half-time, Ivan was exhausted. He dragged himself off the court and dropped into a bench, scooping up his water bottle, drinking his fill, and dropping it back into his bag as he picked up a towel to mop his face with. The crowd roared in applause as he slumped in his seat, his feet spread as he rested his weight on elbows propped against his thighs. It _hurt _to _breathe_. His muscles veritably screamed with every gasp he took, but it was a good, sweet pain, he thought grimly.

The first half had been punishing, but they had been pulling ahead with an eight-point lead before the buzzer went off. As he scanned the crowd, he was pleased to note that the opposing team were not entirely unaffected themselves. The star player on point guard, whom Adnan had roughed up without the referee noticing, looked to have sprained his ankle; he was taking off his shoe and prodding at his shin with a worried, furrowed brow.

He could possibly be made to sit out the second half. If that were to be the case, victory was assured, Ivan decided. His team should have no problems defending against a demoralised opponent.

He turned back to his own team members, gauging their conditions as he refocused on the game plan, mind already a whirl of tweaks to their strategy as the cheerleaders scampered onto the court in a flurry of leaping, tumbling limbs. He was distracted in spite of himself, and paused to seek out the one wheat-blond, blue-eyed member in their midst.

"OKAY LET'S GO!" Alfred yelled, pumping his fists in the air. He was skipping backwards, his shoes squeaking on the polished floor, and his hands now spread and beckoned in a come-hither motion, shouting, "Yeah, come on, LET'S HEAR IT!"

His voice was deeper than the girls' but a couple of octaves higher than Ludwig's, the captain, who drowned out even the crowd's cheer with his own roaring encouragements.

When he first laid eyes on him, Ivan had marked out Alfred Jones as a potential recruit. A recent transfer student, Alfred had the right physique and an incredible running speed, which he generously demonstrated when running across the lawn on campus one afternoon. He would be an absolute asset on the team, Ivan had excitedly thought, their answer to an ace with that _speed_, except…

Except Alfred had chosen to sign up with the cheerleaders before he could ask him.

"It's a last resort since you guys haven't got gymnastics, but it's close enough, I guess," he had overheard Alfred saying to a girl in the corridor. He did not realise just how badly he had wanted Alfred until that moment, when he felt his heart drop like a stone into the pit of his stomach.

"Captain!"

Ivan blinked up at Vainamoinen, his vice-captain. Vainamoinen was hot and flushed with exertion, but he was smiling a thin, manic smile with wickedly shining eyes, an expression the team had dubbed his 'war face'.

"Word is they're benching their ace," Vainamoinen said breathlessly, thumbing over his shoulder. "What's the plan, captain?"

Ivan cast a final, regretful glance after Alfred before forcing his attention back to the game.

"We will go on defence," he said. "We are keeping our lead at all cost, and that means no risks, is that clear?"

Vainamoinen nodded, his small, lithe body trembling with anticipation. Densen and Adnan followed suit, Adnan a little less enthusiastically, perhaps. He would need to keep him back, or risk him fouling again and ruining their chances at victory. Weilschmidt, who was standing a little further back, only smirked.

"Defence?" he sneered. He turned to face them square on, and in a low, menacing tone he said, "We're going all out, and we're going to mop the floor with them. None of this sissy defence shit. We're going to show them all we've got."

His eyes fixed now to Ivan's – two dark purplish-red pupils boring into him, challenging him. "With your permission, of course," he said, and added as a sarcastic afterthought, "_Captain_."

Ivan found himself mirroring Weilschmidt's grin. Weilschmidt was probably the only person he would ever allow to challenge him like this. "No _unnecessary_risks," he finally conceded.

He turned his attention back to the cheerleaders to find that they were just finishing their routine. Alfred brought Natalia down from his shoulders with a little twirl, his eyes bright with excitement.

With a jolt, Ivan realised that Alfred was blushing, and his hand lingered on her shoulder longer than was necessary until she shrugged it off. Something ugly stirred in him. He could see now how completely and obviously Alfred was taken by Natalia, how his eyes fixed to her with gentle warmth, and he wished he had not noticed it.

They finished the second half with a twenty-point lead, but he left the game with a dull ache beating his chest.

* * *

><p><strong>An:** This was originally posted a year ago on Tumblr. Part of the cheerleader!AU _Waiting for Spring_.


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